We stayed 40 minutes south of Baxter State Park at Pine Grove Campground. The site was not very private, but it was right on the east branch of the Penobscot River. It’s very peaceful and serene. They even have complimentary canoes to use. We paddled upriver and let the current drift us back.
We went to Baxter State Park and did an easy hike to Sandy Stream Pond. It is supposed to be a popular place to see moose. We saw lots of moose poop, but no moose. It was still a really pretty place with views of Mt. Katahdin, the northern end of the Appalachian Trail. People hike the whole trail, starting in Georgia and finishing here. It takes them 5-6 months to complete. We saw several of these hikers in the parking lot. You can tell by their huge packs, ZZ top style beards, and they look like they’ve lost a bit of weight.
We went back to Baxter State Park the next day hoping to hike to Chimney Pond. Unfortunately, the parking lot was full so we went with plan B. At most of the ponds and lakes in the park, you can rent a canoe for $1 an hour. We went to Kidney Pond and hiked around the pond to Lily Bay, from there we canoed through the bay and hiked to Little Niagara and Big Niagara Falls. If I were to do it again, I would have canoed across Kidney Pond. The hike around the pond was easy, but you had to watch your footing with the rocks, tree limbs, and crevices.
Baxter State Park is 209,644 acres and was all owned by Percival Baxter. He donated the land to the people of Maine. He asked that it remain wild, so the limited narrow roads are gravel and there is no electricity or water. There are a lot of tent camping sites and some cabins to rent.
We had a great breakfast at the Appalachian Trail Cafe and some really good beer and brick-oven pizza at Knife Edge Brewery.
